Penelope holds a joint appointment with the Schools of Psychology, ITEE and Medicine and her area of research is human factors psychology. She joined the School in 2002 after a career including 11 years at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. At UQ she leads the Cognitive Engineering Research Group (CERG). Her work has been recognised by several awards and honours including the HFESA’s Cumming Memorial Medal and Lecture (2014), the HFES’s Paul M Fitts Education Award (2012) and Distinguished International Colleague Award (2004), the APA’s Franklin V. Taylor Award (2012), as well as a UQ Award for Excellence in Research Higher Degree Supervision (2015).

School of PsychologyMcElwain BuildingThe University of QueenslandSt Lucia, QLDAUSTRALIA 4072

Professor Penelope Sanderson

Qualifications:

PhD (Engineering Psychology) University of Toronto, 1985MA (Cognitive Psychology) University of Toronto, 1981BA (Hons I) (Cognitive Psychology) University of WA, 1979Fellow of the Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia, 2004+Fellow of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society (USA), 2012+Fellow of the International Ergonomics Association, 2015+

Background:

Joint appointment between School of ITEE, School of Psychology, and School of Medicine at UQ.

Past appointments:

Adjunct Professor, Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 1997-2006.

Atyeo, J., & SANDERSON, P. (2015). Comparison of the identification and ease of use of two alarm sound sets by critical care nurses with little or no music training: A laboratory study. Anaesthesia, 70, 818-827. doi:10.1111/anae.13020See also commentary on above paper by J. Edworthy, Anaesthesia, 70, 1215.

Note: Coordinator roles prior to 2009 and tutor roles prior to 2006 are not included.

Research Area:

Human Factors

Synopsis:

COGNITION, PERCEPTION, AND HUMAN FACTORS. In my research group we are using theoretical knowledge of perception, action, attention and memory to better design the fit between people and demanding work environments (critical care medicine, transportation, military contexts, etc.). Some sample thesis topics follow -- many others are possible. Ultimately, the thesis topic and scope are decided collaboratively with each honours student.

1. Prospective memory, interruptions, and distractions

Concern about the impact of workplace interruptions and distractions is very topical in basic and applied psychology right now. Many kinds of safety critical work (aviation, healthcare) require people to manage multiple threads of work at the same time. What effect do distractions and interruptions have on people's work, and is there a need for remedies of some kind? Theories of prospective memory have helped us make some progress in the area, but much more work needs to be done. You would run a study in the UQ Usability Laboratory that examines how people manage interruptions.

With the advent of wearable personal technologies such as head-worn displays (HWDs), we need to understand their impact on visual attention (see the Vuzix M100 and the ORA-2 for two sample HWDs). In the UQ Usability Laboratory we are investigating when HWDs are/are not helpful when users must monitor multiple patients. The results will influence how HWDs are used in healthcare, the military context, and in everyday life. Your lab-based study could be one of those studies.

3. How can auditory displays help doctors and nurses monitor the status of newborn babies or monitor anaesthetised patients during surgery?

We have an ongoing partnership with personnel at Mater Hospital and University of Florida on the design of auditory displays for different patient monitoring contexts--two examples are monitoring the oxygen status of neonates, and monitoring the vital signs of adults undergoing anesthesia. Your thesis on auditory displays for patient monitoring could break new ground and help improve outcomes for patients of all ages.

RESEARCH GROUP AND LABORATORY. We provide a structured and highly supportive environment for honours students. Most of our honours students end up publishing their theses and several students have had the opportunity to subsequently travel interstate or overseas to present their honours research. In 2016, our honours student Hai-Ping Lim won the McElwain Prize for the best individual thesis in the School of Psychology.